


In Her Element

by Sarcastic_Pistachio



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Avatar & Benders Setting, F/F, F/M, Nico is a firebender, Pride, avatar AU, deanoru - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-07
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-03-01 11:32:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13293969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarcastic_Pistachio/pseuds/Sarcastic_Pistachio
Summary: Deanoru Avatar AU?Based on art by elmesart on Tumblr





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I guess I'm writing a Deanoru avatar au?

Nico is a bit of a late bloomer.

The Minorus are some of the most influential entrepreneurs to ever come from the fire nation and they all have the firebending power to match. Everyone except Nico that is.  

Amy is gifted. Nico’s sister started firebending when she was two years old. She can bend lightning by the time she’s 11 and can redirect it before hitting 13. Amy’s room is covered in trophies and medals from competitions. Nico hears the students and coaches at school talk about how Amy is practically guaranteed a spot on a top pro-bending team as soon as she graduates. She watches the way her parents smile in approval each time Amy brings home another award. She ignores the look of disappointment in their eyes every time she fails to produce even the smallest flame, despite having the help of the very expensive firebending master they hired.

Nico hates feeling like a failure, a disgrace to the Minoru name when she compares herself to Amy. But that does nothing to diminish the love she has for her sister.

Amy is patient and encouraging.

_“Don’t worry about it Nico. Lots of people wait years before ever discovering their bending. Its only a matter of time.”_

_“Lots of people have time to spare. Lots of people aren’t Minorus, Amy.”_

_“Yeah, they’re not. Which means they’re not even half as talented as I know you’ll be. Your form already looks great!”, Amy tells her with an encouraging pat on the back, “Trust me, once you get that first spark going, you’re gonna be unstoppable.”_

Nico isn’t sure she believes her, but she appreciates it nonetheless. At least someone in her family is proud of her.

The potential for disappointing her parents weighs down on her constantly, but nothing lightens her spirit like being with her friends. They spend time together often, every time their parents have their PRIDE meetings. Nico isn’t really sure what the elite charity organization even does in Republic City, so she just keeps her nose out of it and hangs with her friends.

When she’s with them, sometimes she manages to completely forget that she still can’t bend. There are no other firebenders in their little ragtag group except Amy, who usually leaves the bending parlor tricks and practice to the others to spare Nico some grief. Besides, Chase and the Steins are all nonbenders so Nico could be worse off, right? Nico just likes to enjoy her peace before she and Amy have to leave the Wilder’s place and go back home with their parents. Unfortunately, it’s a peace that isn’t meant to last.

Nico’s entire world falls apart in a single moment.

Amy is dead and Nico is alone. _She left Nico **alone**. _

They have her funeral a week later, but Nico refuses to cry (not until she’s by herself in her room again). All of the members of the PRIDE show up. Karolina and the Deans stands across from her. She’s dressed in funeral clothes probably made by the monks on Air Temple Island. Her eyes are glassy, her face somber. _It’s how Nico feels_ _inside but she’s not about to put on a show for these people. She doesn’t want their sympathy._

The Steins and Yorkes make up the rest of the circle surrounding the casket as it lowers into the ground. Geoffrey and Catherine Wilder are there too.

Alex isn’t.

The year after Amy’s death is a dark one for Nico. Her group of friends disbands without Amy or their parents to hold them together. She spends her time alone in her room, wallowing in her misery, her guilt, her _failures_. She might feel a little better if she stays in Amy’s room, but her mom refuses to even let her near it.

Eventually, she takes to climbing up the hills on the outskirts of Republic City. Anything to get away from her mother’s disappointment and her father’s pitiful looks.

On one of those days it starts raining. Then pouring. Then the thunder comes. And finally, one bright flash of lightning. Crackling, electric blue, just like Amy’s used to be.

And as Nico sits on the hill, black mascara streaming down her face, she feels nothing but rage. How this happen to Amy? How could this happen to _her?_ Amy was the pride and joy of their family, she didn’t deserve this. And none of them even saw it coming.

Nico couldn’t handle it anymore. She let out all the pain, screaming and cursing and throwing her fists up towards the sky. And to her surprise… two little orange flames shot out.

Nico’s world falls back together in a single moment.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow so that finale killed me...
> 
> Anyway thanks so much for all the comments. I was going to wait to post chp 2 until after I wrote the next one since you're all so nice I'll just do it now.  
> Its a little short but hopefully the next couple will be longer.

Nico sprints the entire way home before yanking open the door and running in soaking wet. She skids to a stop in the living where her parents are sat, looking confused and slightly alarmed.

“Nico, what—”

“Mom, Dad! You’ll never believe what just happened!” She doesn’t give her parents a moment to catch up. “Okay, get ready for this, because I’m about to show you something awesome!”

Nico wants to make sure she gets it on the first try. She plants her feet in the most basic fire bending stance and bends her knees. _Deep breath. You can do this._ Nico breathes in and then extends her arm into an open hand strike, watching the lit bit of fire appear and then dissipate into smoky wisps.  She laughs, turns to her parents and asks, “Did you guys see that?”      

Her father isn’t even looking at her. He’s turned instead towards her mother, with a concerned expression. “Tina?”

Her mother… her strong, calm, sometimes-terrifying mother… looks like she’s about cry. “I’m sorry, I need to go”, she says before rushing out of the room. Her father gives her an apologetic look, “Uhh, that was great honey… I’m going to check on your mom”, before following Tina out.

“Well”, Nico says to the empty room, “That’s not how I thought that would go.”

 

* * *

 

Later, as she sits on her bed finally dry and more than a little disappointed, she hears a knock on her door. “Hey kiddo”, her father says poking his head in, “Mind if I come in?” Nico waves him in from where she’s sitting with her arms wrapped around her knees.

“Listen, I realize that wasn’t… the reaction you were probably hoping for”, he says sheepishly.

“Well that’s the understatement of the century. I’ve been waiting years for this moment! And so have you guys for that matter!”, she says bitterly. As if she could forget their constant dissatisfaction with her inability to firebend before.

Her father has the good sense to look ashamed. “We’re happy for you, Nico. We are. It’s just that—  you reminded your mom of… Amy.”

“Oh. I— I did?”

“Yeah”, he says smiling sadly, “You looked just like she did when she used to firebend. I’m proud of you, Nico and… I know your sister would be too.”

Nico feels her heart swell. _Maybe this could bring us all closer together again._

“I know this is exciting for you, but maybe its better if we put off your firebending for a little while.”

“What?”, she exclaims, turning toward her father in shock, “I’m already behind most firebenders. I should start training right away!”

“You’ll catch up in no time. I just think it might be easier on your mom if we wait a bit. We’re still… processing all that happened last year, and I think we could all benefit from some more time to heal.”

“Oh… okay”, Nico whisper, turning towards the wall and resting the side of her head on her knees. Her father stands and places his hand on her shoulder, “I promise, we’ll start your training soon. Just not yet.”

_Just when things are starting to look up._

 

* * *

 

One thing is for certain: Nico is absolutely a Minoru.

She spends all her free time practicing her firebending. Never at home, never where her parents might see her. She doesn’t do it at school either, although she finds herself frequently wondering what the other PRIDE kids would say if they saw her now. Not that it matters; they won’t. They don’t even make eye contact when they walk past each other in the halls anymore.

Instead, she practices up on the hills or in hidden alleyways. Sometimes late at night, she’ll go down to the empty shoreline and practice shooting her fire bombs, using the light cast across the water from Air Temple Island. A few times, she wonders if Karolina might be awake, working on her airbending in those weird rotating gates. Usually, she snaps herself out of it.

_Only total weirdos practice their bending in the middle of the night. Weirdos with really terrible parents._

Her ability to train may be somewhat limited by the lack of space (or sunlight when she’s practicing at night) but that Minoru skill is there. Its slow going, but she’s clearly above average for someone who just discovered their fire a month ago.

She’s nowhere near Amy’s level but nobody ever really was. Still, firebending helps her feel closer to her sister again. This should have been something they shared, something they could practice and evolve through together. Now it’s just Nico, throwing flames on dark beaches and flipping through Amy’s old firebending books when her parents aren’t home. Its not much, but if this is all she has left of her sister, Nico will take what she can get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think!
> 
> Also if you haven't checked out the art that inspired this, do that because I like it a lot.  
> http://elmesart.tumblr.com/post/168515671235/im-here-for-it 
> 
> Thanks!


	3. Chapter 3

The 2 year anniversary of Amy’s death comes quicker than Nico expected. She feels awful about it, but she’s been so consumed with training herself that she almost didn’t realize. _Almost._ She knows the other PRIDE kids remember that its approaching. They still don’t make eye contact when they walk past each other at school, but she can feel their stares when her back is turned. Like they want to come up and ask her how she’s doing, but they always stop themselves.

Towards the end of their History of the Hundred Year War class (which they all inexplicably got placed in together) Nico sees Alex go up to Chase. He starts by asking Chase about whatever drawings he’s working on. To Nico’s surprised he actually gets an answer… until Chase realizes who he’s talking to.

“Wait, why I am even talking to you Wilder?”

Nico keeps her eyes on her desk as Alex ask Chase if he wants to hang out at his place. Whatever Alex is planning, Nico wants no part of it. She grabs her bags and strides out of the room while Gert and Karolina start exchanging insults.

 

\---

 

“Hey Nico, are you going somewhere?” Nico turns to face her father. “It’s late. Its getting kind of dark out.”

“Uh yeah, I’m just… I was going to meet a friend to uh, study.”

Her father glances at the old scroll held tightly in her hand. “Whatcha got there?”

“Its nothing, just something for a school project”, she says, stuffing the scroll quickly into her bag, “I’ll see you later.” She brushes past him and out of her house, making her way down to the beach.

When she arrives, Nico begins setting out the candles she brought, hurriedly lighting them with her firebending before the sun goes down. She pulls out the scroll stolen from her parent’s extensive library and unrolls it.

“Okay,” Nico mutters to herself, “Not the ideal conditions, but it’ll have to be enough.” She studies the diagrams painted onto the scroll and uses a sharp rock to copy the shapes into the sand surrounding the burning candles. The ritual detailed on the scroll is ancient, and Nico’s never actually seen anyone attempt to do it. One thing she knows for sure though is that the Minorus don’t keep around old junk that doesn’t work.

Granted, she won’t be able to follow the instructions exactly. The old fire nation ritual to communicate with dead loved ones in the spirit world was designed to be performed somewhere a little more … well, spiritual. She would probably have a higher chance of success if she could try somewhere like the spirit oasis in the North Pole but that wasn’t really an option.

Here in Republic City, the closest she could get to that was probably some place on Air Temple Island. But she couldn’t exactly just wander around the island. Even if she could, how would she get there? Her prolific firebending family was **_not_** known for being avid swimmers.

Nico steps up to her pentagram and carefully lights the large pile of branches in the center. Using the light of the bonfire to read the scroll, she begins the incantation.

“I summon the triple goddess, in all her names, faces, and forms. I summon the mother, the maiden, and the crone. I summon you, who lived yesterday, to emerge from the night’s shadow, into the light!”

Nico waits a beat, and feels a breeze as the flames start to flicker.

Then… nothing.

_This can’t be it. Something more has to happen. It has to._

“Amy!”, she yells out into the now darkened sky, “Please, just talk to me!” There’s nothing but the sound of the ocean waves crashing onto the rocks.

“Aaaarrgh!”, Nico screams in frustration, kicking the sand under her feet and scattering it everywhere before collapsing into tears on the beach.

 

\---

 

Lost deep in thought, Nico doesn’t even realize where she’s going until she looks up and sees she’s across the street from the Wilder residence.

_I wonder if Alex’s hangout plans came through._

She’s certainly not going to stick around if its just the two of them. Her question is answered as the front door is opened, illuminating two figures standing on the porch. She recognizes Gert instantly from the purple hair. The person standing next to her has an oddly shaped, pink hat on their head which can only belong to Molly. 

_Wow. For once in 2 shitty years, luck is finally on my side._

Further down the driveway, she spots Karolina and Chase exiting the same car and heading towards the house. She feels a strange twist in her gut at the fact that they clearly came here together.

_Stop it. They live near each other. Of course, they would share a ride. Why does it matter anyway?_

Not wanting to be left alone in the dark, Nico hurries up the pathway, stopping behind her former friends clustered in the doorway. “Hey, got room for one more?”

Karolina and Molly both turn to face behind with a look of surprise. There’s a moment of awkward tension.

“So are you gonna let us in or not Wilder?”, Chase drawls.  

“Oh yeah, of course!” Alex says, stepping to the side and ushering them all into the house. They arrange themselves in their old spots in the guest house, where the same awkward silence falls over them once again. Alex does his best to be cheerful and throws out some entertainment suggestions. Most of them are shot down, and even he can’t stop the heaviness that blankets the room when Molly calls him out for sitting in Amy’s chair.

“Guys, we can’t keep going like this. We can’t keep pretending we’re all okay”, Karolina says with a pointed look at Gert, “I think we need to sit here together and talk this out!”

Nico appreciates her efforts, but she’s met mostly with silence until Chase speaks up. “Fine, but if we’re gonna do this, I’m gonna need some alcohol first.” He leaves out the door without another word, and everyone follows him straight into the Wilder’s study, despite Alex’s protests.

“Relax, Wilder. We’re just gonna get some of the good stuff and then we’ll be out of here”, Chase says, smirking and handing Gert a glass of bourbon.

Alex huffs in annoyance. “At least use a coaster.” He goes to pick one up of the stack on the counter but they all seem to be stuck. “What the –” He tries twisting them apart but startles at a loud grinding noise.

“What the hell?” Nico says bumping backwards into Karolina as the one of the shelves in the study slides away to reveal a dark passageway. “Alex, what is that?” Everyone stares bewildered at the hole in the wall.

“Why do you have a secret tunnel in your house?” Gert says loudly from her seat at the bar.

“I – I have no idea what this is…” Alex trails off in confusion.

Chase pushes him out the way without hesitation and starts down the stairs. “ _I_ know what this is! Its totally a hidden wine cellar. Let’s go!”

“What is this place?”, Gert mumbles to the group, “I didn’t even think houses in Republic City _had_ basements.”

Karolina nods her agreement, “I’m not sure this is a basement… or a wine cellar.”

Nico shivers in the chill of the passageway. _Something about this doesn’t feel right_. They turn the corner and end up above an open room where 9 red robed figures stand. One of them holds open a book on a wooden pedestal and eerily begins some sort of inaudible chant while the others move into a circle.  

“Is this a cult?” Chase asks at the same time as Nico whispers in surprise, “Are those our parents?”

“Oh my – I think Nico’s right”, Alex starts, “And I don’t think they can hear us. There’s some kind of barrier… but what are they doing?”

Their parents gather around a strange silver box in the center of the room. A girl appears dressed in a white robe similar to what their parents wear.

“Wait a minute, I know that girl!” Karolina says to them, “She’s one of the students at the air temple! Maybe this is some kind of spiritual ceremony?”

“This doesn’t look like any ceremony I’ve ever seen”, Gert says directing their attention back to the floor, “And this just got real creepy real fast.”

They watch in horror as their parents force the girl to drink something until she goes limp and then put her into the light emitting box. Gert brings a hand up to cover her mouth and pushes Molly back, “You can’t unsee this.”

That turns out to be a disastrous idea as Molly forces her way forward with a torch she rips off the wall behind them. “Gert, let me see!” The torch crackles and explodes into a bigger flame as it comes into contact with the barrier. “Molly!”, Gert hisses as they turn and bolt back up the stairs, Nico extinguishing the flame when she jumps over the fallen torch.

“I’m sorry”, Molly pants as she runs, “I didn’t mean to do that!”

“Forget it Molly, we need to get this door open! Which one of you closed it?” Alex shouts.

“It doesn’t matter, Alex! Everyone just push together!” Nico orders the group.

The door doesn’t budge an inch. “Why isn’t it opening?” Gert says with panic.

“I think there’s an internal lock on the door… My parents are both earthbenders, they must have made it so that only one of their own could open it.”

“Then what are you waiting for Wilder?”, Chase snaps, “Earthbend it open!”

“I’m not that good! I barely practice earthbending and we’re not even sure what the lock is made of!” Alex says angrily.

Nico rolls her eyes. “We don’t have time for this”, she tells them grabbing Molly by the arm and pushing her to the front. “Both of you open it together.”

Alex and Molly share a look of agreement and assume their earthbending stances, placing their palms flat against the door.

“One, two, three!” They both twist their hands and strike upwards, pushing forward and stumbling into the study as the door gives way. The rest of the kids sprint out after them. Chase and Karolina lead the way with their long-legged strides and burst back into to the guesthouse.

“Holy shit, holy shit”, Gert mumbles frantically, running her fingers through her purple hair, “Did they just – I mean they couldn’t have – Did they really just kill that girl?”

Karolina furiously shakes her head. “No! No way. My mom can be a little uptight sometimes but she’s _not_ a killer! Air nomads are pacifists, we don’t even eat meat!”

“Karolina, you need to calm down”, Chase says, laying a hand on her shoulder.

She shrugs him off roughly. “No, I can’t calm down! You guys are seriously suggesting that all of our parents are murderers?” She glances at the faces around the room but no one speaks up to dispute her accusation. Gert and Alex stare down at the floor looking ashamed and Molly just looks confused. “My mom wouldn’t just kill one of the temple students in cold blood!”

“Regardless of what just happened, we can’t just stand around looking panicked, okay?”, Nico says, receiving a tight nod from Karolina, “We need to act normal. Our parents will probably be here any second.”

“How are we supposed to act normal? We all look like we just ran a marathon!” Gert exclaims. True to her words, each of the kids look red faced and sweaty from their sprint out of study.

A thought occurs to Nico. “Alex, do you still have that net set up in your backyard?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I have an idea.”

 

\---

 

Robert Minoru finishes adjusting the collar of his burgundy shirt and quickly speed walks ahead to follow Geoffrey Wilder up the stairs. “What do you think that was? It is possible Alex knows about this place?”

“I don’t think so”, Geoffrey responds gruffly, “We’ve done this plenty of times with the kids over but they’ve always stuck to the guesthouse. And besides, Alex knows not to be in my study when I’m not there.That sconce probably just fell off the wall. Everything in that place is old and crumbling.”

They walk up to the guesthouse where the door is ajar. Robert pokes his head in, only to be met with an empty room. “He’s not in here. Are you _certain_ that he’s never stumbled into the underground chamber? If he saw what happened tonight this could jeopardize everything.”

“He doesn’t know anything Robert. I’m sure he’s around here somewhere. Let’s just keep looking.”

They walk past the gardens into the backyard and are surprised to find all of the PRIDE’s children divided by a net across a sand pit. Chase jumps in the air and kicks, sending a ball flying down onto the other half of the pit where Molly heads it back up.

“Alex!”, Geoffrey calls out, effectively halting the game. The ball rolls across the ground as the kids all stop and turn to face the parents. They look as though they’ve been playing awhile, breathing heavily with their hands on their knees. “I thought you said your friends couldn’t make it tonight?”

“Oh yeah… they all just changed their minds I guess”

“Yep!” Chase says, giving Alex and over enthusiastic slap on the shoulder, “I guess we all just missed each other more than we cared to admit.”

Robert glances at Geoffrey and raises and eyebrow in suspicion. All of the kids being here only complicated the situation. “Nico, weren’t you going to study with one of your classmates?”

“Uh I did! We ended early and I heard everyone was over here”, Nico does her best to sound convincing, “Thought I’d come over and show everyone how to play Kuai Ball… y’know, it being a uh – classic Fire Nation pastime and all that.” Nico brushes back her sweaty hair with her hand and shifts nervously from foot to foot.

_Please work. Please work._

Her prayers seem to be answered. Geoffrey gives the kids one last glance and asks “So you kids are all good here then?”

“Yeah we’re great sir!”, Karolina responds with a grin, “You guys can head back to your meeting if you want.”

“Alright… parents are leaving soon if you kids need rides.” 

They wait until Robert and Geoffrey disappear back into the gardens before they all simultaneously collapse in the sand.

“That was the most nerve-wracking experience of my life”, Gert groans, throwing an arm over her forehead, “And not just because Nico’s bright idea was for Chase to kick a ball at us at a hundred miles an hour.”

“Hey, I was trying to be convincing!”

“Well I thought it was a good idea.” Nico turns to face Karolina as she talks. She’s covered in a thin layer of sweat, almost making her glow and her arms are flexed from where they wrap around her knees. “It was even kind of fun.”

Nico shoots her a grateful smile.

Alex interrupts Nico’s staring to say, “That doesn’t matter. All that matters is that they believed us. We still don’t know what happened down there. I say we just lay low tonight, and we’ll regroup tomorrow and see what we can find out. Agreed?”

“Agreed.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is a little longer. We've mostly covered all the recap and the next couple chapters should be getting more into the plot. I'm planning to mix the comics and the show a little and this AU takes place around Legend of Korra time (but none of those characters exist). 
> 
> Thanks for all your comments and let me know what you think of this chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for all the comments and Kudos!
> 
> Also I should clarify: everything from the last airbender is canon here. The story is set in the Lok timeframe just to give you an idea of what the technological state is but none of LoK characters or plots ever occurred except for the convergence creating new airbenders (I didn't finish the show lol). Also I'm either not following the avatar cycle, or I am and you can just assume we have passed some unnamed avatars after Aang.
> 
> Here's a longer chapter

_The Republic City police force recovered the body of 20-year-old Destiny Gonzalez on the shores of Yue Bay. Lieutenant Flores has stated that there is no foul play suspected, claiming that the deceased had a previous history of drug abuse. The Lieutenant insists that there is no reason for the public to be –_

“No foul play, my ass”, Nico muttered angrily as she shut off the tiny radio. The 6 kids were crowded around a table in the school courtyard.

Molly stared down blankly at the ground. “I can’t believe our parents really killed that girl.”

“Hey! We don’t know that!” Karolina said, drawing all eyes to her, “I mean, there– there has to be some kind of explanation here!”

Gert crossed her arms and sighed, “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m with Karolina on this one. Maybe all of _your_ parents are crazy psychopaths, but Dale and Stacy couldn’t lie to save their lives! Whatever happened to Destiny, my parents didn’t kill her.”

“Enough arguing about who did what”, Alex interjected, “All of our parents were there that night. That means either they’re all innocent or they’re _all guilty_.”

“And how are we supposed to know which it is?”

Alex clasped his hands together on the table, furrowing his brow in thought. “We need evidence. We should all search our houses for any clues. I’ll see if I can get back into the basement before my parents get home. Chase, you should check your house to see if you can find that weird box. Only your dad could have made something like that.”

“Great, now my dad has an actual reason to kill me when he finds me going through his stuff”, Chase said with an eye roll.

Alex ignored Chase’s comments like he typically did. “Nico, maybe you should come with me? I could use a look out?”

Nico eyed him a bit suspiciously. Alex seemed to be taking this whole situation surprisingly well. Nico on the other hand, felt more and more bizarre with each passing second. 2 years of not speaking to each other and now Alex wants to act like they’re all friends again and go off on some kind of detective game?

“Actually, I think I better check out my own place. My parents have a huge library. I want to look for that book that were using at the uh… ritual?”

“I’ll go with you” Karolina announced.

Alex shot her a disapproving look. “Don’t you think it would be better for you to go the Air Temple? Destiny was a student there. Maybe you can find something in her room. We need to be efficient about this.”

Karolina resisted the urge to scoff. “The temple is run by monks, Alex. We’re not exactly known for being materialistic. I don’t think Destiny even owned anything besides the clothes the monks gave her.”

“Besides Wilder, if efficiency is the goal, maybe you should take Molly with you so you can actually get the door open”, Chase said, smirking.

Gert smiled gleefully and stepped up beside Chase, linking her arm in his. “That sounds like a great plan! In fact, I think we should all go in pairs… for safety reasons. I’ll go with Chase.” She bumped her shoulder into his, “If anyone really needs a look out, it’s this idiot.”

“Ok then its settled”, Nico said, “we’ll go in pairs and then we should meet near the docks just before sundown to regroup.”

\----

Nico carefully slid open the door to her parents’ library.

Karolina followed behind her in awe. The room is expansive, every wall lined with tall oak bookshelves that stretch from floor to ceiling. Glass display cases are positioned near some of the pillars, containing books and scrolls so old that they look like they would fall apart if touched. “Nico, this place is amazing! I can’t believe you’ve never shown us it before.”

Nico ran her fingers along the spines of the books as she walked. “Yeah, that’s mostly because I’m not actually supposed to be in here. My mom would freak if she knew I was anywhere near her precious, rare books.”

Karolina came up to stand beside Nico as they surveyed the largest shelf together. “So how exactly do we find this book? Does your mom keep a section on murder methods?”

Nico laughed darkly. “I wouldn’t be too surprised if she did. I don’t really know what these are categorized by, we might just have to go shelf by shelf.”

They searched through the books for almost half an hour, chattering occasionally when they pulled out one that was particularly interesting. After a while, Nico felt an odd shift in the air and glanced up to look at Karolina. She was perched on the shelf ladder, staring pensively at the book in hand although she didn’t actually seem to be reading it. “Hey, everything good?”

“Oh – yeah”, Karolina startled, “Everything’s fine… I was just thinking how strange it is for all us to be together again. Even being here in your house, I feel like I’ve stepped into the spirit world and I’m in a completely different place.”

Nico flashed back to her thoughts from that morning. “Believe me, I was thinking the same thing.”

Karolina didn’t say anything for a moment, but when Nico glanced back up, her face twisted into a strained expression. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry, for the way we fell apart. I really missed you guys but after the funeral, everyone else seemed to be doing ok and I didn’t want to burden anyone. I – I wanted to be there for you Nico, but I didn’t know how to help you with that kind of pain. But that’s not an excuse”, Karolina turned and made eye contact with Nico, “We should have… I should have tried harder. So, I’m sorry.”

Nico cast her eyes down and angled herself away as all the things she’s tried to avoid thinking about come flooding back.

And oh, how that apology was _so Karolina_. Only she could experience what the six of them did and still be worried about everyone but herself. Karolina was possibly the most compassionate person Nico had ever met, sometimes to a fault. Nico isn’t sure she ever once considered how her former friends were feeling. To be fair, they lost a friend and Nico lost her sister. Those two things would never be equal.

But still, Amy had always looked after all of them.

“Kar, its not your fault. It’s not anyone’s fault. I think we all handled that situation the best we could. I just needed to be alone so I could try and heal”, Nico smiled softly at Karolina, “For the record? I missed you too. Uh, all of you I mean.”

Just as she was about to respond, the door to the library slid open and Robert Minoru walked in. “I thought I heard voices in here”, he raised an eyebrow in surprise when he spotted Karolina wobbling on the ladder in a panic. “Karolina, nice to see you again. What are you two doing in here? You know how your mother feels about this Nico.”

Nico motioned for Karolina to follow her out. “Sorry Dad, we just wanted to look around. We’ll go up to my room now, bye!” She pulled Karolina out the door by her wrist and lead her up the stairs.

“Well now what do we do?”

“I think we might be looking in the wrong place. I can’t believe this didn’t occur to me before, but my mom is way to smart to hide a secret book in the _library_.”

Nico and Karolina slipped into another room, shutting the door quietly behind them. The room is elegant and well organized. A tall desk is sat by the window and are large, probably expensive painting of the Fire Nation royal palace hangs on the opposite wall.

“Is this your mom’s office?”

“Yup”, Nico replied as she begins opening drawers, “Even my dad knows not to come in here. If my mom was hiding something it would have to be in here. But we have to make sure we leave everything as we found it.”

Karolina walked around the rooms as Nico continued her search, stopping in front of the painting. “Have you ever been here before?”

“Huh? You mean the palace?” Nico replied distractedly, “I’ve seen it. I haven’t actually gone inside though.”

“Its beautiful. I’ve always thought its strange how even decades after the war, people from the four nations don’t mix outside of Republic City.”

Karolina’s musings were interrupted by Nico exclaiming, “Found it!” and the painting suddenly swinging forward from the wall to reveal a small compartment.

“Do all of our parents have secret hidden places in their houses?!” Karolina said incredulously, pulling an old leather-bound book out.

“This is definitely the book my mom had that night.” Nico grabbed the book and began flipping through only to find that every single page was blank. “What the hell? How are we supposed to read a book with no writing?”

“Are you sure we have the right one?”

“We have to. Why else would my mom keep it locked up in her office?” Nico shut the book again to inspect the cover. It was a dark brown, with nothing but a gold emblem on the front; a triangle with 6 lines crossing in the middle.

“Wait a minute – I’ve seen that symbol before!”, Karolina said.

“Really? Where?”

“On one of the doors at the Air Temple. I’ve only ever seen my mom go in there.”

Nico tucked the book under her arm and shut the compartment. “Well, it looks like we’ll be stopping by your place after all.

\-------

“Ok Gert, I really don’t want to get caught down here so lets try and get in and out as quickly as possible”, Chase said, weaving his way through tables. Every surface in the lab was covered in unfinished projects, bolts and wires strewn about.

“No arguments here. Do you know what any of this stuff is?”, Gert asked, picking up a strange contraption covered in blinking lights. On second thought, maybe she shouldn’t pick it up. If Gert didn’t know any better she’d swear it looked like an explosive.

“I don’t know. I know some of it is stuff for the newest leapfrog model. And then there’s these babies!”, Chase spun around towards Gert with what appeared to be a pair of metal gloves with glowing, blue circles in the middle.

“Great, I’m sure Alex will be thrilled when we report back to him with metalbending accessories”, Gert deadpanned.

“Gert! These aren’t accessories”, Chase said, sliding one of his hands into a glove, “In fact, I designed them specifically for nonbenders. I call them the fistigons. My dad has been helping work out the kinks, but the idea was all mine.”

Chase smiled proudly to himself and flexed his hand. Gert stepped back quickly as electricity sparked around the metallic fingers. “Wow, those are packing some serious fire power. I’m actually kind of impressed.”

Gert laughed as Chase puffed his chest in response. “Easy tiger, don’t let that one entire compliment go to your head. We still have to find that box.”

They checked the rest of the workroom, moving heavy tables and machines out of the way to make sure they hadn’t missed anything. “If my dad did actually make that murder box, I don’t think its here.”

Gert and Chase leaned up against a wall wiping sweat off their brows. “Speaking of your dad… are you guys like… okay now? I mean if he’s helping you with the fistigons, things must be better right?”

“I don’t really wanna talk about it Gert”, Chase said as his posture tensed. For once, Gert chose not to be her nosy self and didn’t press the issue. Somethings were better left alone, at least for the time being.

“So, what should we do now?”

“Maybe we should go check out your place!”

“My place?”, Gert scoffed, “Unless you think homemade brie will solve our problems, I don’t really see the point.”

“Aw c’mon Gert!” Chase said, grabbing his bag and heading towards the door, “We still have over an hour before we have to meet the others. Your parents are just as into the crazy science as mine. Let’s just see if we find anything interesting!”

Chase didn’t wait for an answer, but Gert’s footsteps could be heard following after him anyway.

\----

“Do we have to do this?”

“Nico, it’s called Air Temple _Island_. We can’t exactly walk there.”

Nico and Karolina stood on the shores of the bay. Karolina grasped onto a thick rope holding a small boat in places against the waves.

Nico covered her face with her hands and groaned. “I _know_ we can’t walk there, but do we have to take a boat? I _hate_ boats.”

“Would you prefer to swim?”

“Very funny. Can’t you use one of those little whistles and call over a flying bison? You’re an airbender, you should like flying!”

Karolina put her hands on her hips and shot Nico a withering look. “I’m not disturbing them just because you’re afraid of a little water.”

“Fine”, Nico grumbled, and shakily took a step into the boat. “I can’t believe you do this every day just to get to school.”

Karolina followed after her, taking a seat beside her on the small wooden bench. She pulled the rope into the boat and set off towards the bright lights of the island.

“I usually don’t. To be honest, its mostly just the few nonbending monks who use these boats. We normally use the bison. When it’s just one of us like when I go to school in the mornings, I just use my airbending staff.”

“And we couldn’t have done that because?”

Karolina rolled her eyes fondly at Nico’s dramatics. “ _Because_ I don’t have my glider with me today and even if I did, I’m not really sure I could stay in the air with two of us. I’ve never tried anyway.” Nico only moaned in response. “Cheer up Nico. Look, we’re almost there.”

Nico leapt out of the boat the minute she had it safely docked. “Alright, lets get this show on the road.”

Together they began the climb up the path towards the Temple. “I don’t think anyone will stop us on our way in, but if anyone asks just say I’m giving you a tour.”

 Karolina offered hurried greetings to the monks and students that they passed. Meanwhile, Nico took in the impressive look of the Temple. It was inspiring, yet simple. True to the airbender way. Nico wasn’t really one for excessive admiration, but even she had to respect the way the Airbenders had brought themselves back from practically nothing, rebuilding their temples and reviving their culture while creating new traditions at the same time. That kind of resilience was something Nico had always appreciated.

Lost in thought, Nico didn’t realize that Karolina had stopped and bumped straight into her. Nico peeked around the taller girl to see what had caused the sudden halt.

A man stood before them, dressed in all white instead of the traditional red and yellow. She felt Karolina stiffen in front her, though she was unsure why. She peered back at the man who didn’t seem all that imposing, but when she looked into his eyes she found her self feeling eerily unsettled. Maybe Nico was going crazy but the man almost seemed to have… a faint glow around him.

“Karolina, its so good to see you again”, the man said, reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder.

Karolina shrunk away, shrugging his hand off and forcing Nico backwards down the corridor they came from. “Uh, its good to see you too Jonah. I was just giving my friend Nico a tour of the Temple grounds.”

Nico felt a surge of protectiveness caused by Karolina’s uneasy behavior and stepped around her so she ever so slightly in front. This guy was definitely giving her a bad vibe.

“Ah, yes. You must be the Minoru’s daughter” Jonah said with a smile. Nico glanced at Karolina in surprise but received a similar expression of confusion in return. She didn’t know this man and her parents had certainly never mentioned him.

“Um yeah, that’s me. How do you know my parents?”

“Interesting, so your parents haven’t told you about me?” Nico didn’t reply and Jonah continued, “You could say we’re colleagues. I’ve worked very closely with PRIDE over the years, I just prefer to spend my most of my time here at the Temple. Better company.” Jonah looked towards Karolina as he said the last part.

“Oh well, its really nice meeting you and all but we really should get going. I have to be home soon and there’s still a few things Karolina wanted to show me before I leave.” 

“Very well, it was pleasure. I’ll see you around Karolina”, Jonah said before walking past them.

Karolina released a deep breath once Jonah had disappeared around the corner, grabbing Nico’s hand and continuing their path towards the other room.

“What was that all about? Who was that guy?”

“I’m not really sure anymore. I thought he was just an old friend of my mom’s. He started visiting the Temple about 2 years ago but he’s been here a lot more frequently lately. I had no idea he had anything to do with PRIDE. My mom never brought that up. Then again, she only ever tells me what she wants me to know”, Karolina added with a hint of bitterness. “Jonah gives me the creeps, so I prefer to avoid him when I can. Sometimes I think he’s obsessed with me or something. No matter where I am on the island, he always shows up sooner or later.”

Nico pushed down her feelings of concern at Karolina’s revelation as they approached the end of the corridor.

“Okay, this is it.”

Nico pulled the stolen book out of her bag and held it up in front of the door. Karolina was right, the symbol on the cover matched the one painted on the door exactly.

“I don’t know how we get in though. Its always locked, and only my mom has the key.”

Nico gave the handle a push, and sure enough it didn’t move. “I don’t suppose this is the kind of lock you can open with your bending, like the one at Alex’s house?”

Karolina shook her head. “No chance. Then almost all of the students here would be able to open it themselves.”

“Well luckily for us”, Nico said pulling a few pins out of her hair, “I picked up some tricks a few years ago to make up for my total lack of bending.”

Nico crouched down and got to work picking the lock.

After a few moments, Karolina broke the silence. “Hey, do you really think that our parents are… murderers?”

Nico paused her work for a brief second. “I don’t know. I sure hope not but after what we saw? Well, I’m not ready to give them the benefit of the doubt.”

“I guess you’re right”, Karolina replied, her voice a little strained, “I just can’t comprehend how my mom could do something like this. Destiny _loved_ her. We trained together a few times and she was always so nice and encouraging to everyone. She didn’t deserve this.”

This time when Nico paused, she reached up and grabbed Karolina’s hand. “Kar, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you knew Destiny that well. And you’re right, she didn’t deserve this. That’s why we’re going to figure what really happened to her, okay? We’re going to make this right.”

Karolina gave Nico a grateful smile and allowed her to return to her lockpicking.

“And… there we go!” Nico said proudly as the lock finally clicked open. She ushered Karolina into the room quickly before anyone could spot them.

“Okay, this is not what I was expecting my mom to be hiding in her super secret room.”

The room was all white with a ceiling made up completely of large, glass window panes. It was mostly empty; there was a bed up against one wall with a small side table next to it, a short bookshelf, and a plain dresser beside it.   

“I guess we should look around?” Nico trailed off. She wasn’t really sure what they were looking for. There was barely anything in the room to begin with.

_Karolina was right, they really aren’t very materialistic._

Nico began pulling open the drawers of the dresser, only to discover they were all empty.

“Hey, come look at this”, Karolina called from where she stood by the side table with the drawer pulled open.

She held up a small silver band, about the size of a bracelet. It had the same symbol as the book and the door engraved on it, as well as countless others that Nico didn’t recognize.

“What do you think it is?”, Karolina asked.

Nico pulled it out of her hand and inspected it. “It looks like it might be some kind of decoder ring…”

“To decode what? That book we took from your house didn’t even have writing in it.”

“I’m not sure”, Nico replied, “But I think we should take it with us just in case. It’s the only thing in here that could possibly be important enough to be kept locked up.”

“Okay”, Karolina agreed, “We should head out now though. Its almost time to meet the others.”

“Can we please take a bison this time.”

“Nico…”

“Pleaseeeee”, Nico begged, giving the blonde her best pout.

“Fine”, Karolina finally relented, “but only if one of them is already awake!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all liked this chapter! Be sure to tell me what you think! 
> 
> Next chapter: The runaways run away?


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I realize I'm reviving this story after like a year hiatus (SORRY) but I binged all of Runaways Season 2 in one night because it was amazing and I couldn't stop myself from continuing this. Hopefully, there aren't too many typos. Enjoy!

Nico hopped down from the sky bison and onto the beach, glancing around for any sign of the others.

“Thanks for the ride buddy”, Karolina said, nuzzling her face into the bison’s soft fur, “You can go back home now.”

The bison took off into the air behind them as two figures came up over the rocky hill.

“Alex and Molly are here”, Nico said pointing.

“Hey guys”, Alex nodded his head in greeting, “Are Gert and Chase here yet?”

Nico shook her head. “Nope, but they should be here soon. Did you guys find anything at your place?”

Alex and Molly shared a disappointing look. “We didn’t get the chance.”

“Alex’s parents got home before we could even try getting the door open!”, Molly chimed in before plopping down in the sand. “I hope you guys had better luck than we did.

“Actually, we might have”, Nico replied. Karolina stepped up to her side, pulling the decoder ring out of her pocket. Nico unlatched her backpack, sliding out the heavy book.

“Hey, you found the book!” Molly exclaimed happily.

“Well… sort of”, Nico grimaced. She held the book out towards the two and flipped the pages from cover to cover, showing them the empty pages. “We have the book but we’re not really sure what to do with it.”

“And, we have what we think is a decoder for the book”, Karolina said, holding up the ring. “Well, that’s what it would be if the book had any writing.”

Alex pinched his fingers on the bridge of his nose in frustration. “Great, so we’re back exactly where we started. Nowhere.”

“Hey, we _aren’t_ nowhere”, Karolina muttered in mild annoyance, “Just because we haven’t figured out how to use this stuff yet doesn’t mean we can’t. Any maybe Gert and Chase will come back with more information that can help us!”

“Speaking of Gert and Chase, where are they?”

\---

“Wow, this place is a disaster”, Gert said as they filtered through the things scattered throughout her parents’ basement lab. It was somehow in even more disarray than the Stein lab had been, except instead of partly built machines, the tables were littered with vials full of strange chemicals. “Remind me again what we’re looking for?”

Chase shrugged his shoulders as he walked past some crates with test animals in them. “I don’t know. Something incriminating. Something that screams evil… Like this giant locked metal door!” Chase grabbed on the latch and gave it a sharp pull just to be sure. “Do you know what your parents are keeping in here?”

Even Gert had to admit she was curious. She and Molly rarely set foot in the basement, uninterested with their parents’ experiments.

“I have no idea.”

Gert walked up behind Chase and squished her face next to his to peer through the small circular window.

“Do you hear something growl– _Oh SHIT_!”, Chase exclaimed, the two of them falling backwards onto floor as the creature inside pounced at the door.

Gert and Chase exchanged equal looks of fear and confusion.

“You didn’t tell me your parents had a baby polar bear dog!”

“Because I didn’t know! They’re supposed to be extinct!”

“Well I guess not anymore. Let’s check and make sure that’s what it really was.”

“Are you insane?” Gert shouted, jumping up and placing her hand out to prevent Chase from trying to open the door. Unfortunately, the second her hand touched the door, a beep echoed in the room followed by the unmistakable sound of locks releasing. The two teenagers made eye contact once again.

“Run!”

They took off towards the stairs, knocking into tables as they ran. Gert made it to the bottom of the staircase first but Chase wasn’t so lucky. 

“Chase watch out!”

A giant mass of white fur lunged at Chase knocking him to the ground. It may have been young, but the polar bear dog was easily the size of a small horse at least. Chase was certain he was going to die in that moment as the animal pressed its paws into his chest and opened its jaws.

“No, stop!” Gert yelled against her better judgement. To both of their surprise, the polar bear dog _did_ stop. It stayed hovering over Chase with its eyes on Gert.

“Gert, I think… I think she’s listening to you”, Chase whispered, praying he was right.

Gert could barely think straight. The severity of the situation had her anxiety skyrocketing as she put her hands out in front of her in a peaceful gesture. “We’re not going to hurt you”, she said stepping closer, “Just back up”.

Chase sat up as soon as the animal moved away, sitting on its hind legs. “This is amazing!”

“This isn’t amazing! My parents bioengineered some kind of prehistoric animal that should be dead, Chase. This has to be all kinds of illegal!”

“Yeah maybe, but so is murder! And this is way cooler. Try and see if you can touch it.”

Gert gave him and incredulous look but Chase just raised his eyebrows in the direction of the animal.

“If I die its on you”, Gert muttered. She took slow steps towards the animal with her right hand out. The polar bear dog angled its head at her before moving forward and nuzzling its nose into her palm. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

“This is awesome!”, Chase exclaimed happily with a fist pump, “We are definitely coming back to the group with the best news.”

Gert couldn’t help but laugh at his demeanor. Sure, they hadn’t found any evidence of their parents being murderers but at least they didn’t get their faces eaten off either. “Come on, we need to head back soon. I guess we can take her upstairs for now”, Gert said, nodding towards the animal.

Chase shut the door to the basement as they exited. “See, maybe we were all just overreacting the other night. Our parents—”

He was cut off by the sound of the Yorke’s front door opening. His eyes widened and he swiveled towards Gert who responded by grabbing his wrist and dragging him into an alcove around the corner. She quickly motioned for the polar bear dog to hide in the other room just as Dale and Stacey walked in.

“Tina is really starting to get on my nerves”, Stacey said shaking her head.

“I know honey but we just have to put up with it. If everything goes as planned hopefully soon, we’ll be able to disband PRIDE forever and never have to see her smug face again.”

Gert and Chase glanced at each other in their hiding spot. _Why would they need to disband a charity organization?_

Suddenly, the phone in the kitchen rang, drawing the attention of the parents.

“Hello?”, Stacey answered. She paused for a minute before mouthing “Its Tina” to her husband with a roll of her eyes.

“Wait what?!” The conversation on the other end was clearly becoming alarming. “But that means— ok yes, we will.” Stacey quickly hung up the phone before turning to Dale with a pale face. “Tina said she went into her office and the Abstract was missing.”

“No, that can’t be”, Dale replied becoming panicked, “Only the Minorus should have access.”

“They do. She says Nico must have taken it. She’s the only other one who could’ve.”

“But if Nico took it that means…”

“It means Geoffrey and Robert were right. The kids were in the ritual chamber that night. They know we killed that girl”, Stacey said gravely. “We need to find our kids.”

The rest of their conversation became muted to Gert’s ears as she turned to Chase with tears in her eyes. “They— they…”, she choked out. She could feel the world closing in on her as the realization set in. Her parents were actually murderers. All of their parents were.

“Gert. Gert!”, Chase whispered. “We have to get out of here and tell the others. Is there another way out of your house?” Gert didn’t reply. Her muscles felt frozen and she couldn’t move. Chase shook her gently by the shoulders, “Gert please! We have to leave now before they find us.”

Gert nodded numbly before stuttering out, “Y-yeah. There’s a back entrance we can go through. Follow me.”

Together they took off to warn the others of the huge storm that would be coming their way.

\---

Thirty minutes after Nico and Karolina had arrived, the group of four was still sitting on the shore waiting for Gert and Chase.

“This is taking too long,” Molly complained, kicking as the sand with her shoe, “I think we should go look for them.”

Karolina stopped twirling the staff she had brought back with her. “I agree. They knew when we were supposed to meet up. I’m starting to get worried.”

Alex opened his mouth to reply but before he could, Gert and Chase came bursting out from behind the shipping crates.

“Guys! We have to leave now!”, Chase was shouting as they sprinted towards them.

The other four stood up in alarm as Chase and Gert skidded to a stop in front of them. Gert put her hands on her knees panting. “He’s right”, she huffed, “We don’t have much time.”

The group stared at them in confusion as Alex spoke, “Woah, just slow down for a second. Did you find that box in Chase’s house?”

“No there was nothing in my Dad’s lab. We found other stuff at Gert’s house though.”

“Yeah like a genetically engineered polar bear dog that listen to all my commands”, Gert muttered.

“Wait, really?” Molly asked excitedly.

Chase straightened up to address the group. “That’s not what’s important. While we were there Gert’s parents got a call from Nico’s mom. She said that Nico took something from her office called an Abstract?”

“What?”, Nico exclaimed, “We don’t even know what it is yet and we just took it an hour ago. How did she already realize its missing?!”

“It doesn’t matter”, Gert said cutting her off, “Our parents know we were there that night. They know that we know they killed that girl.”

Karolina couldn’t believe what she was hearing. They may have stolen some weird, blank book and a stupid piece of jewelry but that wasn’t hard evidence. “No way. I don’t believe you guys. We still don’t know for sure that they did anything”, Karolina said.

“Except we do”, Chase replied somberly. “Dale and Stacey admitted it when they were on the phone. And Nico’s mom probably called all of our parents. They must be out looking for us right now.”

His words spurred Nico into action. “Then you guys are right. We have to leave tonight.”

Karolina spun around to face her. “Nico you don’t honestly believe that they really killed Destiny, do you?”

Nico placed a comforting hand on Karolina’s arm. “I’m sorry but after what we saw and with this new information, we can’t ignore the truth anymore. Our parents are probably combing every part of the city right now to find us. Your mom is right across that bay, the second she leaves she’ll catch us immediately. We need to move.”

Nico looked around at the faces of her friends. Karolina and Molly looked absolutely heartbroken at these discoveries. Gert looked ready to pass out from the stress of the situation and Chase wasn’t doing too much better. Alex didn’t look at any of them, just staring at the ground deep in thought before asking, “Where can we go that’s safe? We know that our parents probably have the entire police force in their pockets, otherwise they wouldn’t have covered up the murder like that.”

“You’re right”, said Nico, “We only have one option. We have to leave Republic City and go to one of the other nations. Maybe we can find someone who can help us. And if not, at least we have the abstract and the decoder. If we figure out what PRIDE’s endgame is, maybe we can stop them ourselves.”

“Are we really doing this?”, Molly asked with a hint of fear in her voice.

“We have to. And it has to be all of us. No one gets left behind.” Nico surveyed her friends once more as they all nodded in reluctant agreement. “Ok then its settled. Tonight, we run away.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all liked it. Let me know what you thought in the comments :) It really motivates me to write more.


End file.
